Continuing the look at Mattel's Mad Matty March sale and the MOTUC figures available we come to a popular variant of a popular character; Battle Armor Skeletor!

Battle Armor Skeletor comes in the standard MOTUC packaging with the back of the box showing off other figures in the line and featuring a bio for the character that ties his new armor into the new continuity.

Here again we see a good example of why putting Etheria in Despondos over complicates the continuity. Had Hordak been freed earlier he could have run off with Adora himself and we wouldn't need this "armor that can pierce the Mystic Wall" -a concept that undermines the whole purpose of the wall. Plus Skeletor should not have been pulled back once the armor was destroyed the Mystic Wall is just a wall that's magically enhanced to prevent it being torn down. And why wait 20 years to make a new one? And I HATE the idea of Teela being a magically created clone of Sorceress instead of her biological daughter. (Hell even Fisto being her dad is a better idea!) I also don't really like the concept of the old mini-comic Skeletor being the same guy even though the old He-Man is someone else. (Of course I don't like the Pre-Filmation comics being included at all so there is that factor) If they wanted his armor tied to past events, well it has a bat logo on it so way couldn't it be his armor from when he was serving under Hordak?

Yeah, in short, I don't like the bio. On to the figure itself.

Battle Armor Skeletor is essentially the same mold as regular Skeletor, except he has the flat ab torso to go with his armor. The torso is therefore painted a metallic purple color to match up. Also, just like the vintage figure, he has the furry loincloth piece instead of his usual belt piece. He also has painted feet giving him full boots. The original prototype shown had the bare feet but Mattel changed it before release, "by fan request." Well, personally I specifically requested not to have the toenails a different color, but this is still a nice difference. They also went and colored his fingernails too. His face, or lack there of, also has a nicer paint job that better matches the vintage look with less green-wash.

Really there's not much more to say about the figure since, as I said, he's basically the same Skeletor we've already seen with new armor. So let's look at the armor.

The armor is a very precise recreation of the vintage figure's with amazing detail such as the small skull on the front. It's got a wonderful paint job with a nice metallic hue to it. The armor is made of harder plastic similar to many of the vintage line's figures. (Though vintage BA Skeletor's itself was not removable) Like the vintage line the armor snaps on via snap pegs at the top and bottom, and while not as brittle, I would advise being a little careful when removing it, which you have to do to change the battle damage showing.

The vintage Battle Armor figures had rotating drums in their chests that moved when struck to turn to the new damage. Since the Classics line lacks action features (mostly) this is not the case. However the Horsemen did create a way to switch out the battle damage. The center of the armor has removable plates that pop out so you can snap in a new one to show the amount of damage you want.

This is a great way to bring the classic look in for display purposes, though it is a bit of a pain to have to keep taking his armor off every time you want to change it. Odds are you'll probably pick one look and stick with it.

Battle Armor Skeletor's plates are also supposed to be interchangeable with Battle Armor He-Man's if you wanted to mix up the look a bit. For some reason though I couldn't get mine to stay in, though I've seen it enough times with other people's to know it should be possible. The armor can fit on other figures as well, though they will have a bit of their torso hanging out at the bottom which won't match up color wise.

Since the armor plates count towards the overall accessory total, BA Skeletor comes with only one weapon, and it's a new one. Well it's a new look for an existing mold anyway. He features a metallic purple version of the battle ax. This is Mattel's answer to many fans request for an ax similar to the one Skeletor had in several episodes of the Filmation cartoon series. Personally though, while it's not a bad weapon, it doesn't quite match the Filmation ax so I would have preferred if he had his Havoc Staff instead. I find it a bit disturbing that with all the versions of Skeletor so far (Original, Keldor, TRU 2-pack, Battle Armor) only the original has come with his most iconic weapon. Sure there was a variant of the staff with Faceless One, but to me it's as important for Skeletor to have his Havoc Staff as it is for He-Man to have his Power Sword.

Aside from the staff issue though the Classics version is a perfect recreation of the vintage figure, while accounting for the lack of being able to have the action feature.

There is no 200X version of Battle Armor Skeletor. Well, yes there is a 200X variant called Battle Armor, but it is in no way an update of the vintage figure and just shares the name. Battle Armor He-Man got a 200X staction version of him, but Skeletor was not so lucky.

Once we got a Battle Armor He-Man in the line it was assumed Skeletor wouldn't be far behind. (well a year later is kinda far behind but...) He goes along perfectly and really brings one of the most well known, and coolest looking, versions of Skeletor to the line.

Battle Armor Skeletor is available now on Mattycollector.com as part of the Mad Matty March sale going on through the 20th and is therefore marked down 10% off the normal price. So now is a good time to get him while supplies last. Good Luck, and until next time, Good Journey.

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